Delio Rossi tells Fiorentina their only hope to trouble Milan on Saturday is to “play like provincial minnows,” but admits his team feel like they are under siege.

The Viola are in dire straits and dropped to fourth from bottom, although five points separate them from the drop zone.

“When I arrived on the Fiorentina bench we played against Milan and got a draw, so I don’t understand all this pessimism ahead of tomorrow’s game,” insisted Rossi.

“We will gamble with our cards the way we always have done, hoping it can all go well, from our attitude to the performance of the referee.

“We have to step on to the field as if we were provincial minnows, which means being efficient and focusing on the objective of securing safety. Clearly there are concerns within the locker room, otherwise they’d be fools, but we are not afraid. That’s a different thing.

“We’ve nothing more to say and just need to get out there on to the pitch. In a certain way, everything we say now could be used against us.”

Fiorentina do feel they are under siege from their own fans amid angry protests and this week the ultras turned down the chance to talk to their Coach in a private meeting.

“I think the President met with them. A summit was planned over the last few days, but was not possible. I never said the fans were behind the crisis – I merely asked for their help.

“It’s obvious the blame for the current situation lies with me and my players. In my career I always managed to make a mark on the teams I trained, but so far in Florence I haven’t done that yet. It is beyond doubt that there are some problems and mistakes were made.”

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